Just as Daoist Master Xiao had talked himself parched, he took the tea bowl from Yuanya's hand and gulped it down. He then handed the empty bowl back to Yuanya. "Tell the tea stall owner that when this old man Ascends to the Heavens someday, I'll definitely take him with me!"
"Yes~" Yuanya nodded obediently, then turned and went back.
Xiao Hua was somewhat worried for Yuanya. He wondered whether the tea stall owner would think Yuanya was sick in the head and beat him out for saying such things.
Of course, Xiao Hua's worries were unnecessary. After a while, Yuanya returned completely unscathed, without the slightest trace of embarrassment or dishevelment. Still, Xiao Hua had no doubt that Yuanya had repeated those words to the tea stall owner word for word.
The blazing sun hung overhead, and waves of cicada song rose from the banyan tree behind Xiao Hua. Yet those cicadas could not drown out the rumbling of Daoist Master Xiao's stomach, especially after he had just drunk such a large bowl of tea.
"How strange! What's going on today?" Daoist Master Xiao was clearly growing impatient. Ordinarily, after sitting here for so long, at least one or two people ought to have come by. With his silver tongue, he should have been able to coax a few copper coins out of someone no matter what.
"Master, why don't we... go back first?" Yuanya understood True Person Xiao's thoughts quite well and reminded him softly.
"This old man refuses to believe it!" True Person Xiao had originally intended to leave, but Yuanya's words stirred up a fit of anger in him. "Will there really be no business today? Could it be that after those monks from Little Gold Temple made a mess last night, this old man is